News
27 August, 2026
Onisforou highlight of community forum
Video of the speech below. Theo Onisforou gave a fascinating update on his Apprehended Violence Order (AVO) involving Wingecarribee Shire Council at a Community Forum hosted by Dr. Raymond Khoury at The Venue in Bowral on Wednesday evening.
Theo Onisforou gave a fascinating update on his Apprehended Violence Order (AVO) involving Wingecarribee Shire Council at a Community Forum hosted by Dr. Raymond Khoury at The Venue in Bowral on Wednesday evening.
Mr Onisforou was a guest of the forum alongside Mark Finch, Managing Director of Emerald Horton Asia Pacific Pty. Ltd, who spoke about the prevalence of data centres globally and the various technologies that could be utilised to run them apart from the traditional coal and gas – fired power stations.
Onisforou was initially given 15 minutes to speak, but as he had so much to say, he ended up speaking for 45 minutes.
“The whole of that 45 minutes was very well received,” Onisforou told The Southern Wire.
“I made it clear that what I was saying was a political speech, and that I was told by my lawyers to mention no councillors by name and I did not.”
He also told the room that he has ‘become the most popular man in the Highlands’, thanks to the AVO.
“I cannot walk down the street without people voicing their support of my concerns concerning Council and in support of me defending the AVO,” he said.
“Yes politics is a popularity contest, and I believe I am now the most popular man in the Highlands!
“Regrettably, some people in the Highlands are being attacked by Council as ‘faceless’ but only because they are concerned about being prosecuted with an AVO like me.”
Mr. Onisforou announced, subject to an independent Senior Counsel sign off, that he will not be a current property developer as of October 2028, and said that he would be running for Council and had aspirations to be Deputy Mayor, stating that Dr. Khoury should be Mayor.
He quoted historical leaders such as Martin Luther King and former US president Barack Obama on the importance of freedom of speech, and the importance of the public speaking out if they are unhappy.
“I pointed out that the criminal proceedings against me are normally dealt with by a fine rather than criminal proceedings, but this matter is for some reason being treated abnormally,” he said.
“The criminal proceedings arose consequent upon Council cancelling my permission to speak, and the Police brief says that my permission to speak was cancelled because of a speech I had given in 2025 which I have posted to YouTube.”
He invited everyone to look at that speech and to form their own opinion.
“As to the AVO matter, I referred to Council’s ‘Managing unreasonable conduct by complainants’ policy, dated 20/11/24; which makes quite plain at paragraph 4.7.6:
- ‘In rare cases and as a last resort, when all other strategies have been considered, the General Manager may decide it is necessary to completely restrict the complainants contact’.
He also quoted paragraph 4.9.3 – PROVIDING A WARNING LETTER, which states:
- ‘Unless a complainants’ conduct poses a substantial risk to the health and safety of staff and other third parties, the managing governance and corporate performance will provide them a written warning about their conduct in the first instance.’
“I made it absolutely clear, and despite asking in writing that if there were any objections to me publishing a letter, that if any of my correspondence caused Council an issue I was never ever asked to stop writing to them,” he said.
“And the first instance I understood Council were unhappy with me was when the Police issued their interim AVO application upon me.
“All of the correspondence to Council was on political issues, with never a threat of violence.”
Mr. Onisforou also gave a brief review of his CV and quoted that in view of his law and accounting degrees and in his time as Chief Investment Officer for the Packer empire, this therefore made him a suitable person to join Council’s Finance Committee.
“I surveyed the room to see who would want me on the Finance Committee, and every single person in the room put their hand up,” he said.
Mr. Onisforou also described the RePoly issue as an ‘orphan’ because it seemed ‘unloved’ by the seven councillors, whilst the gas fired data centre was being ‘championed’ by Council.
He quoted science which stated that micro plastics were much more harmful than carbon dioxide and stated he still did not know why Council would not participate in the legal proceedings against RePoly.
“I challenged the Council to produce any legal opinion they had received which prevented them from accepting a donation from the non-developer public to defend the Repoly court proceedings,” he said.
“I indicated that to encourage Council to answer this challenge that if the legal advice did exist at the time which stated that they cannot accept a donation, then I would not run for Council.”
He then asked the question if it (the legal advice) did not exist, then why was it not sought when free money was available to Council, particularly in view of their poor financial circumstances.
“Why did Council not want to help stop Repoly?” he said.
“I also refer to a recent Land and Environment Court case by me against Council in which I am certain to win.
“I spent $200,000 on lawyers and experts, and Council used outside lawyers and experts as well and may have spent the same amount of money.
“What should happen as a standard operating procedure in the future, and to help Council save money, is to not ask the law firm whether or not to fight the appeal knowing that if the law firm says ‘yes you should fight the appeal’ and that they will get the legal work.
“Then Council should seek an independent law firm’s opinion on whether to fight an appeal.
“But that law firm may be well aware of the fact that if their advice is to proceed with the appeal or to defend it, then they will not be receiving the legal work in any event.”
Mr. Onisforou also said that he was ‘a friend of the Police’, in that he was ‘a very unusual person because he had made two citizens arrests’, one of which led to a $2,000 reward from the NSW Police and the other to a Police commendation for bravery.
“The fact that the Police had brought criminal proceedings on a fine only matter against me means that the NSW Police will be wasting their valuable time, the NSW court system will be wasting their valuable time, Council’s lawyers (who have already been to court twice at their expense in this matter), are all wasting their time for a prospective three day hearing (it has already been mentioned in court three times at considerable expense) seeking to prosecute me for matters that are in the Magistrate’s own words ‘ticket only offences normally”.
He also gave the hypothetical that if after a Council election, one councillor had a current AVO against another councillor, and one council staff member had a current AVO against a new councillor, what should happen in those circumstances is that the new councillor be democratically elected and therefore receive more votes than the other that had the active AVO.
“I suggested in that hypothetical that perhaps the councillor with the lowest number of votes should resign to avoid AVO conflicts, and perhaps the staff member would have to also resign in favour of the democratically elected councillor,” he said.
He said that he had also asked if Council had obtained legal advice on the possibility of them being sued by future residents of Bowral South for rezoning, and that they could potentially suffer flooding damage.
He stated that future and existing residents of homes downstream of Bowral South would also become flooded because of the fill occurring at Bowral South, which would then inevitably lead to additional flooding downstream.
“I predicted confidently that Council had not obtained legal advice, because they did not want the answer to that question,” he said.
Mr Onisforou’s AVO and charges are listed for hearing later this year.
NOTE: The Southern Wire notes that part of the video has been replaced with music when a community member asked a question which we will not publish.
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